Horse-collar block



vUNITED sTATEs PATENT oFFioE.

T. J. VAN BENSCHOTEN, OF POGHKEEPSIE, NEW YORK.

HORSE-COLLAR BLOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 13,189, dated July 3, 1855.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, T. J. VAN BENscHoTEN, ofPoughkeepsie, in the county of Dutchess and State of New York, haveinvented a new and Improved Adjustable Block for Stretching and FormingHorse-Collars; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to theannexed drawings, making .a part of this specification, in which- Figure1, is a longitudinal vertical section of my improvement, the plane ofsection being through the center. Fig..2, is a back view of ditto. Fig.3, is a plan or top view of ditto, the jaws being closed, and the topplates of the jaws removed. Fig. 4, is also a plan or top view of ditto,the jaws being distended.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the severalfigures.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I willproceed to describe its construction and operation.

A, represents a cast iron plate which may be permanently secured on aproper table or bench. The front end of this plate is of semi-circularform as shown clearly in Figs. 3 and 4, and the sides of the plategradually expand or project outward from the front to the back end.

On the front end of the plate A there is a stationary aw B, constructedof cast iron and permanently secured to the plate or cast with it. Theupper part of the jaw B, is of semicircular form and its sides or edgeis concave as shown in Fig. 1.

C, C, are movable jaws also constructed of cast iron. These jaws are ofoblong shape, their back ends being rounded and their outer sides oredges gradually expanding orl projecting outward from their front totheir back ends, in short, the shape of the three j awswhen in contactas shown in Fig. 3, correspond to the shape of a horse collar, the frontstationary jaw B, corresponding to the top end of the collar, and thetwo mov able jaws corresponding to the lower part, the sides or edges ofthe jaws being concave to correspond tothe inner surface of the collar.

The under surfaces of the two movable jaws C, C, are provided each withrecesses or grooves (a) (b) in which guides or ways (c) (d) on the uppersurface ofthe plate A lit see Fig. 2, and vdotted lines in Fig. 3. Theguides on the ways (c) (d) are placed obliquely on t-he plate A orgradually expand or project outward from the front to the back end ofthe plate A, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 3.

D, represents a screw rod which works in a bearing (c) at the back endof the plate A. The screw rod is fitted between the lower parts of thetwo movable jaws C, C, and has a nut E upon it to which nut two springarms (f) (f) are attached, the outer ends of the spring arms beingattached to the front ends of the movable jaws C, C, at their lowerparts, see Fig. l, and dotted lines in Fig. 3. The outer end of thescrew rod is provided with an arm or lever F. On the upper surface ofeach jaw there is attached by a screw (g) one or more plates (It), seeFigs. 1 and 2. These plates correspond to the shape of the jaw to whichthey are attached and are for the purpose of increasing the thickness ofthe jaws so that they may correspond to the size of the collar to bestretched or formed. These plates may be constructed of cast iron, andof various thicknesses, and more or less of them used according to thesize of the collar.

The jaws C, C, are moved up to the stationary jaw B, by operating thescrew rod D, and the collar, represented by G, is placed over the threejaws C, C, B, the screw rod D, is then turned from left to right and thetwo jaws C, C, are moved in consequence backward and outward owing tothe oblique position of the ways or guides (c) (al) and the collar G, isstretched or formed to the desired size and shape.

To the stationary jaw B, at each side there is att-ached a metallicplate corresponding in form to the edges of the jaws. These plates forman unbroken edge or surface all around the jaws when the jaws aredistended, see Fig. 4.

Now it will be observed that by this arrangement and operation togetherof the obliquely sliding jaws (C C) effecting simultaneously thelongitudinal and lateral stretch of the collar gradually and uniformlyalong either side of the collar through the greatest portion of itslength and toward the broadest end of the collar where the capacity forstretching is greatest, while the narrow and front or upper end of thecollar is firmly held by the stationary jaw (B),-no undue pressure orstretch in any one part will occur, the stretching action laterally andlongitudinally is smoothly and evenly effected by the longitudinalpressure or rub of the oblique sliding jaws along either side of thecollar whose form by this extended and even pressure is better preservedwhile the work is performed with increased facility; and by thearrangement shown and described of the operating screw nut with thesliding jaws (C) by its attachment thereto by the spring arms (f), itwill be observed that the greatest freedom of action is insured to thesliding jaws, (C) and that the screw nut, having no other bearing orfriction surface than that which it has on the screw rod itself,presents no restriction whatever to the lateral as well as thelongitudinal and free and independent actions of the two oblique slidingjaws on their ways.

I claim nothing new in the arrangement of the one screw rod between thetwo jaws, nor yet in the mere arrangement of the three jaws or blocksand the effecting of a longitudinal and lateral stretch to the collar bythe one operation of the screw; when these parts have been differentlyoperated, as such have before been used, but

/Vhat I do claim as new and useful herein, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, is-

l. The arrangement and operation together, substantially as shown anddescribed, of the obliquely slidinol back jaws (C) along either side oredge o' the collar on its interior, with the stationary front jaw to thenarrow or upper end of the collar as and for the purposes set forth andwhereby the advantages herein speciiied are obtained. y

2. And I further claim giving to the obliquely sliding jaws (C), actingseparately but in concert, increased freedom of action or play on theirways to effect simultaneously the lateral and longitudinal stretch ofthe collar, by connecting the freely supported operating` screw-nut withthe obliquely sliding jaws by spring arms (f) as herein set forth.

T. J. VAN BENSCHOTEN.

Witnesses:

SILAs E. HAIGHT, J EREMIAH DUBOIS.

